


It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

by TheGirlWhoWearsBlack



Series: My Christmas Jukebox [1]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Fluff, Dorks in Love, F/M, First Christmas, Fluff, Misunderstandings, Oblivious Spencer Reid, One Shot, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:14:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27822838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGirlWhoWearsBlack/pseuds/TheGirlWhoWearsBlack
Summary: Spencer is excited about their first Christmas together. Is she though?
Relationships: Spencer Reid/Reader
Series: My Christmas Jukebox [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2036053
Comments: 1
Kudos: 56





	It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Welcome to day 1 of "My Christmas Jukebox": 12 days, 12 one shots inspired by 12 of my favorite Christmas songs. I'll be posting every other day until completed as we all get in the spirit and mood for this holiday season. 
> 
> Today's shot is inspired by the song "It's Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas" by Michael Bublé.  
> Enjoy!

When exactly does Christmas time start? Everyone has their own opinions; some celebrate it as soon as the first current of chill air hits their face. Others wait until December 1st. And some until Christmas eve.

Christmas was not Spencer Reid’s favorite holiday; it wasn’t even in the top three. However, this year was different. This year, he had someone to spend it with; his girlfriend YN. It wasn’t like Spencer didn’t enjoy Christmas because he was ‘ _alone_ ’, he always had his friends to count on. But having a very special someone to share such a beautiful time of the year just hit differently.

YN was one of most, nay, she was actually the most infatuated person with Christmas he had ever met.

They met the year before around Christmas time while shopping for wrapping paper at the supermarket. They bumped into each other at different aisles enough times for them to say something about it and break the ice. It was as if something else, perhaps Christmas magic or whatever, wanted them to talk. YN ended up giving him her phone number and on January 2nd, Spencer Reid picked up the phone and asked YN out on what was going to be their first coffee date out of the hundreds -and counting- dates together.

For that reason, whenever he thought about YN, the first thing that came to mind was simply the image of her buying wrapping paper in an elf sweater and a Santa hat. Therefore, this year, Spencer just wanted to give her an amazing Christmas experience.

He was a Halloween guy, not a Christmas guy, but for her, he wouldn’t mind switching from orange & black to red & green.

His entire life, he had managed to avoid all of those cheesy Christmas movies, the undeniable connection capitalism and Christmas had, as well as all of the over-the-top decorations that slowly took over every single corner of every single place in every single city in the vast majority of the world. But having YN by his side during this time of the year, meant that he had to get familiarized and on board with every single one of those things.

“Spence!” YN’s voice made him snap out of his thoughts, even when she was a room away from him.

It was not long ago that they decided to take the big leap and move in together. This wasn’t only their first Christmas together as a couple, it was their first time living together during the holidays. Spencer wanted to make sure every single detail was taken care of. He wanted to surprise her, make her feel like the tiny apartment they shared was actually her home.

“Hey, man, you’re really late for work. What are you still doing here-?”

YN’s voice was closer this time, as she was standing in the middle of the main living space at the apartment. Her eyes lit up at the sight of the living room, dining room and kitchen adorned with lights, garlands, crowns, stockings and other ornaments, in all its Christmas-y glory.

Spencer felt his chest filling up with pride once YN’s mouth opened a few centimeters with amazement. She then approached the fireplace still with her lips parted but now with a slight frown. 

“You did all of this while I was sleeping?”

He nodded and placed his hands inside his pockets, avoiding to fidget with his fingers.

“But…Thanksgiving was last week.”

“You don’t like it?”

“No!” YN exclaimed. “I mean, I do like it, it’s just that…”

“Too much?”

“No, not too much, but…”

“Too soon?”

“A tiny-itty-bitty soon, perhaps.” YN turned back to face him. Spencer was struggling to now show his disappointment at her reaction. He probably could’ve fooled anybody else, but not her. “Spence…”

“It’s fine. I got to get to work.”

“I love it, I swear!”

“I’m already late.”

Spencer grabbed his coat and satchel and left their apartment in a rush.

He couldn’t understand exactly what went wrong. He had put so much time and effort into making something extraordinary, something that he wasn’t used to doing, because he thought that his girlfriend -who practically was a Christmas queen- would have loved it. It broke his heart a little to see that frown in her face, even if it was there for a quarter of a second.

Looking back at it, decorating their home so extravagantly was a bit much. Maybe he was rushing things and made YN feel uncomfortable.

“A penny for your thoughts.” Prentiss snooped into Spencer’s desk. “What’s gotten into you? You have been quiet all morning, even after Anderson said that it ‘ _only took him a parsec’_ to finish the report.”

“A parsec is a measure of space, not time.”

“Precisely.” She pointed out and used her feet to turn Spencer’s chair in her direction. “And you completely overlooked it.”

For a fraction of a moment, Spencer thought about telling Prentiss the truth. They weren’t as close as he was with JJ, but Prentiss was actually more objective when it came to giving him advice. She was the first to know that he was dating YN and the first one from the team to meet her. Nonetheless, Prentiss was no doubt, going to make fun of him giving into the capitalist Christmas scheme in order to woo a girl.

“Reid, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me.” She chanted as if she just read his thoughts. “Is it YN?”

“Yes.” He confirmed and then whispered to avoid eavesdroppers: “I think I might have messed up, Emily.”

“Pretty boy messed up his only chance to get some?” Morgan announced his presence as he squeezed Spencer’s shoulders. “What did you do? Talk dirty to her in Klingon?”

“Oh, snap!” Prentiss laughed. “That was a good one. Did you, Reid?”

“No, I didn’t. You know what? Never mind.”

“No, geez, come on, man, I was just messing with you.” Morgan apologized. “Tell us what’s wrong, maybe we can help.”

“You’re just going to make fun of me and I honestly don’t feel like putting up with it.”

“We’re not making fun of you, I swear.” Prentiss drew and x over her chest, then stared at Morgan inviting him to do the same.

“Me too.”

“Fine.”

Spencer looked around, he wanted to be certain that no one else was listening or getting involved. He sighed deeply, as if the air he was breathing was actually courage.

“You know how YN is a huge fan of Christmas, right?”

“Well, you said you met the girl when she was wearing a freaking elf sweater.” Morgan scoffed and cackled. “No need to be a profiler to assume she is.”

“Oh my god, please don’t tell me that she’s already decorating the apartment and you told her off.” Prentiss amusedly joked.

“Not exactly. It was kind of the other way around.”

“The other way around? Were you decorating?”

The fact that Spencer wasn’t answering and that with every second that went by he lowered his head even more, spoke volumes about it.

“We just came from Thanksgiving break! What’s wrong with you man?”

“Chill, Derek. Dr. Reid here has never been with a female human during the holidays, cut him some slack.”

Spencer groaned with annoyance, jumped from his chair and left Prentiss and Morgan giggling at each other’s dumb jokes. He walked determined to JJ’s office down the hall, entered and closed the door shut behind him. JJ’s blue eyes took a peek over the monitor of her computer alongside her knitted brows.

“Is there a case?”

“Is it too early for Christmas decorations?”

JJ squinted and tilted her head to the side, unsure if she was following Spencer, who sat in front of her.

“There’s not a case, then.”

“No, there isn’t.”

“Well, then, I have to get back to these files which contain actual cases.”

“JJ…”

The way Spencer said her name was a sign that he was going through something rough. She sighed deep before placing her full attention on her friend.

“What’s wrong, Spence?”

“I spent the entire night decorating my apartment to surprise YN.”

“That’s so nice coming from you, the man that never in his life has decorated for Christmas.” JJ teased. “What did she say?”

“She didn’t seem to like it.”

“Why? Why do you say that?”

“You should’ve seen the look on her face, the frown and there was zero enthusiasm in her voice. I’m thinking that maybe I went overboard and ruined it.”

“Oh my God, Reid. I don’t think you’ve ruined anything.” JJ giggled, making Spencer scrounge his brows. “What I’m trying to say is that yes, maybe she wasn’t expecting to wake up November 30th to a house fully decorated for Christmas, but that doesn’t mean you’ve ruined your relationship with YN.”

“I feel so embarrassed.” Spencer stated covering his face with both of his hands. “She’s going to think I’m lame or something.”

“Look, I understand. This is the first Christmas you spend with her, and you guys just moved together like what? Three weeks ago? Of course, I get why you’re so eager and excited about this holiday season.”

JJ smiled tenderly, stood up and sat by Spencer’s side. She placed her hand over his arm on an attempt to comfort him. He twisted his mouth to the side and stared at her.

“If YN is who you think she is, she will understand too and then there will be nothing to be embarrassed about. Plus, a lot of the streets and malls are already decorated for Christmas.”

Spencer let a small grin appear on his face as the wise words of his friend slowly dawned upon him.

Perhaps he indeed rushed things a bit, nonetheless, he knew YN well enough to be certain that she wouldn’t mind once he explained himself.

“Thanks JJ. I should’ve come to you right away instead of letting Derek and Emily.”

A loud laughter came from JJ’s throat at the same time she shook her head repeatedly. “You know I love those two, but they know nothing about committed long term relationships or Christmas for that matter.”

When the moment to go home came, Spencer tried to encourage himself to talk with YN and explain what he felt. The feeling of embarrassment still lingered and would probably remain there for a very long time, all and all, he just wanted to make sure that him and YN were on the same page about the holidays and their relationship. The last thing he wanted was to make YN feel like they were in a hurry.

As soon as Spencer reached the floor his apartment was in, the sweet, stirring smell of freshly baked cookies hit his face. He figured that maybe someone in the building was baking a tray. Yet, the closer he got to his apartment door, the stronger the scent was. Once he opened the door, he was greeted with the sight of YN devoting her full attention at a big bowl in her hands. Every time the door closed, it screeched, thus getting YN’s attention.

“You’re home!”

“So are you.” Spencer answered with surprise at the same time he took off his coat and satchel. “I thought you had an event tonight.”

“Nothing the girls can’t handle without me.”

They smiled at each other, staring into the other’s eyes. Spencer got closer to where YN was in order to inspect what was going on in the kitchen. Two trays of sugar cookies laid over the counter along with bowls of various sizes that contained different colors of icing. It wasn’t very often that YN baked something. Or cooked. It wasn’t her thing or his, that’s why seeing the kitchen being used was unusual.

“Spencer, I wanted to talk to you about this morning.”

“No, I wanted to talk to you. I know that I went overboard and rushed into this entire Christmas thing. I am just so excited about spending this time with you and living with you…and I understand if you want me to take it off and-”

“What?” YN interrupted Spencer’s rambling. “Please do not take it off. I meant it when I said I loved it.”

“You did?”

“Yes!” She exclaimed, putting down the bowl she was carrying, then she grabbed one of his hands. “I’m a sucker for Christmas, I love _love_ this.”

“But it is too early, I get it.” Spencer gave in with a sigh.

“Not at all. I usually put everything up by November 15th, but with us moving together a few weeks ago I wanted us to settle down first.”

“I really thought you didn’t like it, YN.” Spencer explained, still staring at her eyes. “You seemed so unhappy this morning.”

“Because I kind of wanted us to experience decorating our home together.”

Spencer’s jaw dropped and then covered his face with his free hand, unable to meet YN’s gaze. This was worse than rushing things. He actually ruined something she wanted to do with him. He felt like a complete idiot for not thinking that maybe, just maybe, the Christmas queen loved to decorate things herself.

“YN, I’m so sorry, I should’ve known.”

“Hey, it’s ok y’know?” She forced him to look at her. “After years and years of doing it all by myself I’m glad someone else did it for me this year. Plus, there’s a bunch of other Christmas and winter activities we can do together. Hence, the sugar cookies you will help me to decorate. You are going to get overwhelmed with the amount of Christmas stuff I have planned for the two of us. ”

The corners of Spencer’s lips went up in a big smile that turned into a toothy one. It was such a relief to know that YN was more than ok with his decision, and though it might have not been the perfect one, she was still mesmerized by it and loved the gesture.

YN was just the person he wanted to be with.

His hand slid over the countertop to snatch one of those cookies, without any success as YN slapped his hand and pulled him closer to her. She then passed her arms around his neck, pulling him down a few centimeters.

“Thank you for doing this for me. It really means a lot.”

“I’d do anything for you. I love you, YN.”

“I love you more.”

Spencer leaned down making their noses brush against the other’s, followed by their lips connecting in a slow, sweet kiss. YN caressed Spencer’s neck and hair softly. He rubbed his thumbs against her cheeks, kissing her until he was out of breath. Spencer wrapped YN into his arms, and kissed her cheek one more time before placing his chin over her head, as they watched their home shine in all of its Christmas glory.

“I still can't believe you did all of this by yourself. It really does feel like Christmas already. Not too shabby for your first time.”

“Wait, what makes you think it is my first time decorating?” Spencer inquired with a brow raised.

“I moved here three weeks ago. During the process I had to reorganize a lot of your stuff to fit mine. I saw not even one box of Christmas stuff. So, either you don’t decorate for the holidays or you do, but when it’s over you throw everything to the trash and buy more stuff the following year.”

“You need to stop hanging out with me or you’re going to become _me_.” Spencer said amused at YN’s inferences.

YN laughed momentarily, turned to face him, and with a more serious tone she said; “I’ll never stop hanging out with you. You’re the best.”

Spencer’s heart almost jumped out of his chest when he heard YN’s words. No one had ever made him feel the way she did. And it was a pleasure of his to share such a special time of the year with her, such as Christmas. He went in for another kiss, only to receive a small peck by his girlfriend and a sassy: “Now, these cookies will not decorate themselves. Come on, Spence.”

Song: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJ5DOWPGxwg>

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> Please let me know what you think <3
> 
> Remember that I'll be posting new shots every other day. That means 1st, 3rd, 5th, etc.  
> Have an amazing holiday season and please be safe!  
> Love, A.


End file.
